Stubborn senior dog - any tips?
Our black lab/Chesapeake Bay retriever mix Jazz has always been stubborn but since she has gotten older her attitude has really become "fuck it".
She will do the exact opposite of what you tell her - tell her to go upstairs and she goes and jumps on the bed in the other room (downstairs). Tell her to stay downstairs (because stairs are hard for her) and she sneaks out and climbs up the stairs. You can call her in from outside until the cows come home - she will come in when she wants to. Ask her to move off the furniture or on the floor - nope, not happening. Part of it I know is because she is older and comfortable.
She is 14 and adorable of course. Her hearing is still fine (if I accidentally touch her walking leash and it makes that jingle she can come from any room of the house). She has never been easy to train - she couldn't care less about treats. She won't eat a treat until our German Shepherd eats one first - to see if he likes it. She never liked toys - she is only interested in toys when she can play keep away from the other dog (first our lab mix who has since passed away and now the GSD).
We have noticed this trend in our other dogs (who have since passed) - once they hit 10 yrs old, they just laugh at our futile attempts to ask them to move, come, etc. Forget sit, stay, and stuff - that is just hilarity for them.
Sigh - so I guess it is really us not the dog. Once they hit 10 we get soft because we know that our time is limited and we just want to hold them and never let them go. They probably sense that we aren't serious - not like when they were younger.
I know for some breeds 10 is still young - but my mom's amazing GSD died when he was 10 and it was so hard on all of us (he was such a great dog!) I think it just sticks with us.
So I guess the tips would be for training us not our senior dog 
= new reply since forum marked as read
Lots of them. 
hugs back at ya 
The first suggestion is always my first suggestion - learn about that other species from the point of view of someone who has put their life into that:
"Culture Clash: A Revolutionary New Way of Understanding the Relationship Between Humans and Domestic Dogs"
This book is a life changer for some, was for me. She created the program for the San Francisco SPCA, and is not just a top notch trainer but also gets into how we see ourselves and dogs.
Here's a site from another very, very good trainer - http://www.shirleychong.com/keepers/mindgames.html
Your dog has had 14 years to figure out how to live in your world, and now she is doing exactly what dogs do - trying to maximize her play, sleep, and eating, because she is smarter about living than most of us. 
The book will help how you look at dogs in your world, along with some very practical training tips. The second is mostly all practical. Both have much the same philosophy of training, I think, and are very well known in their field.
Both set your you and your friend up for success. The dog isn't being stubborn, she is just using the learning picked up over the past 14 years to her advantage. Most likely she is playing a never ending game, and is waiting for you to pick up on the rules. If only you had a better nose...noses are at least as important as eyes in the dog's world...but we can't help that.
She sounds like a lucky dog.
